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AJ Styles Makes a Phenomenal Return at the Royal Rumble

AJ Styles Makes a Phenomenal Return at the Royal Rumble

AJ Styles is back! The Phenomenal One made his return at the 2025 Royal Rumble, which took place at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Styles has been out of action since suffering a Lisfranc (mid-foot) injury during his match against Carmelo Hayes on the October 4, 2024 edition of SmackDown. As a result, Hayes won that fight via referee stoppage. But Styles was back with a vengeance at the Royal Rumble.

AJ Styles Has a History With The Royal Rumble

Styles made his WWE debut at the 2016 Royal Rumble, so it’s fitting that he returns at the same event. In 2016, Styles entered the match at number 3.

Styles lasted 28 minutes and 58 seconds in that match, and he even got two eliminations. This was all before he was the 11th eliminated Superstar, all thanks to Kevin Owens.

In 2022, Styles had the longest time spent in the Royal Rumble that year. This was after his 29-minute and 6-second performance. He also had the most eliminations in that Royal Rumble, with a total of six.

AJ Styles Kicks Off The Road To WrestleMania at Royal Rumble

AJ Styles returned at the 2025 Royal Rumble, and he was determined to kick off his own road to WrestleMania. He entered at number 22, and he received one of the loudest pops of the night. Plus, Styles has his old theme song back!

Styles found himself mixing it up with familiar faces and some newer names. He was ultimately the 24th Superstar to be eliminated, and the man responsible for that was Logan Paul.

Regardless, AJ Styles is back to look after the house that he built.

More From LWOS Pro Wrestling

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Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on AJ Styles, the WWE Royal Rumble, and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can check out an almost unlimited array of WWE content on the WWE Network and Peacock.

About Chinyere Okafor

Chinyere is a combat sports writer since 2021, fueled by a lifelong love and interest for the industry. She became a member of the Last Word On Pro Wrestling editing team in 2024. With dreams of worldwide travel and adventure, I embrace combat sports and writing as my thrilling avenues of exploration for now.